CMS established a new physician nutrition specialist specialty code, effective beginning Oct. 1.
The code helps physician nutrition specialists — physicians with advanced expertise in clinical nutrition in addition to their primary medical specialty — to be more accurately identified in Medicare enrollment and claims processing, according to an Oct. 5 National Board of Physician Nutrition Specialists news release. The code does not create a new Medicare benefit or guarantee payment for specific services.
“It provides a way to identify Physician Nutrition Specialists within the Medicare system and supports greater recognition of clinical nutrition as an area of specialized physician practice,” Michael Rothkopf, MD, a board member of the national board, said in the news release. “Physician Nutrition Specialists work closely with Registered Dietitian Nutritionists and other health professionals as part of an interprofessional care team to meet patients’ nutrition needs.”
The national board and American Society for Nutrition requested CMS establish the code.
Physician nutrition specialists may diagnose and treat primary nutritional diseases, use nutrition to care for patients with complex nutrition-related conditions and contribute to disease prevention, the release said.
